The tone of “I Hear America Singing” is affirming and ultimately idealizing. As indicated in the title, the entire poem is organized around an auditory metaphor, with the speaker framing themselves as a listener. The speaker doesn’t explicitly pass judgment on the “varied carols” (line 1) they hear. However, they do repeatedly affirm the various voices they hear singing. Consider the following lines (lines 2–3) as an example:

   Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe and strong,
   The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam.

In both lines, the speaker affirms that mechanic and carpenter alike each sings “his” own song. Aside from asserting the individuality of each song, this phrase also insists that, because each man sings “his” own song, it’s inevitable that the song will sound exactly “as it should be.” That phrase—“as it should be”—has an idealizing ring to it, suggesting that every note of every song is somehow in exactly the right place. And furthermore, because every note is in exactly the right place, there’s no possibility for dissonance. Hence, despite being laborers who do grueling and sometimes dangerous work, they’re all still “singing . . . strong melodious songs” (line 11) that seem to meld in perfect harmony.